Gooseberry Diseases

The most common problem is the same as with any type of berry, birds. If you’re thinking about growing gooseberriesthen you will be pleased to know that they aren’t too fussy about their soil conditions unless it’s really poor and you should add some low fertility soil improver before planting.

Netting may be required depending on your area. The most common disease is sawfly larvae; these little critters can very quickly defoliate a plant. Mildew can be a problem for younger plants. You need to pick off the sawfly larvae and cut out any mildewed leaves.

How to prune gooseberries

Pruning in the winter will help to form an equal branch structure and keeps the centre of the gooseberry bush open to make picking easier. Mildew and some diseases are also reduced if air circulation is encouraged.

Prune back the previous year’s growth to two buds. These are the fruits from the old wood and around the base of last year’s growth.

You will need to prune out any shoots that are growing into the centre of the bush, and make sure you cut back the leaders by one-third.

If your growing gooseberries starting with a bush then summer pruning certainly isn’t essential, but if possible prune the side shoots back to about five leaves and do this in June. This allows the sun to reach into the centre of the bush and help ripen the fruit.

If you’re going to use single-stemmed cordons then these can be trained onto canes or against a wall that will allow it to grow to 1.8m (6ft) tall. In summer, again prune the side shoots back to five leaves to encourage the fruiting spurs to develop.

You will also need to tie the leading shoot tip into the support as it grows.

In the winter, you will need to shorten the previous year’s growth on the main tip back by about a quarter to encourage the new side shoots. Shorten side shoots that you pruned in the summer to two or three buds.

When it comes to Harvesting Gooseberries

Make sure that each string of fruit is fully coloured and pick the whole bunch. Make sure you where gloves as the prickles hurt!

Eat the gooseberries from fresh or if you’re that way inclined make them into preserves or jellies.